The invention relates to an apparatus for the destruction of machines, equipment and tanks, especially gun barrels thereof, comprising a casing filled with an alumino-thermically reacting mixture of substances, which casing has been provided with a fuse and with one or more outlet openings for the highly heated liquid reaction products.
Alumino-thermic arrangements of this type are known from the German Pat. Nos. 1,153,664 and 2,035,737, for example. As compared to the destruction of machines, equipment, tanks and guns by explosive charges, these alumino-thermic destructive devices have the advantage that the destruction takes place in an inconspicous and harmless manner. On the other hand, a disadavantage of these alumino-thermic apparatuses consists in the fact that they are relatively large, heavy and susceptible (sensitive) to shock. The reason for this is that, according to the doctrine explained in the two above mentioned patents, the casing of the device is to consist of a highly fire resistant material or a material with highly fire resistant lining, in order to be able to resist the heat occurring in case of the alumino-thermic reaction. In practice, this has led to the use of casings in the form of ceramic pipes with great wall thickness and of considerable length. For example, in case of a gun barrel caliber of 15 cm, a suitable ceramic pipe may have a length of about 100 cm. Such ceramic pipes have, however, a considerable weight, are unwieldy and are extremely susceptible to breakage in case of shock or drop. At the same time we must point out that the disadvantages of such devices approach a special degree because these devices, in order to be able to use them immediately in case of need, must always be carried along in the tank or with the gun.
A general object of the invention is to minimize or obviate problems of the sort previously discussed.
A primary object of the invention is to provide an alumino-thermic destructive device which is highly compact, i.e., of minimal size and/or weight, and which exhibits improved resistance to shock and drop.
Another related object is to reduce the reaction time of the alumino-thermic mixture of such a device to accommodate a further reduction in size and/or weight.